Labor Unions Raise Political Campaign Funds
It takes money to carry on politics to any degree of success. And now that the labor union element has openly entered the arena, the necessary funds must be raised. The president of the National Federation of Labor asks for $250,000 from union men comprising the federation, for the purpose of defeating certain Congressmen who are candidates for re-election. The plan of the president is somewhat similar to that of the National Reform Association's Bureau of Reforms, whose headquarters are also at Washington. The head of the bureau presents his "reforms" to individual members of Congress, and if they do not favor the schemes, they are given to understand that the bureau has agencies in the member's district which may possibly endanger his prospects for re-election. The "bureau" has boasted of carrying several measures by this means. The president of the federation has adopted the same tactics, and his efforts will bear fruit just to the extent that he can make his influence felt, and that will depend, in no small degree, on the amount of money he can put into a campaign. Congressman Gillett, now a candidate for governor of California, is one man marked for defeat.